A New Style
by Henrika
Summary: Riza is having a frustrating day and Ed comes to the rescue in the most unlikely way. Oneshot.


A New Style

Henrika-I wanted to see some nice interaction between Ed and Riza, so here it is.

First Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye was frustrated. And annoyed for that matter. She gave a death glare to the object on her desk, wishing for a brief moment that she was an alchemist so she could transmute the thing. Her co-workers shied away from her, keeping their head down. Even her fearless boss had taken refuge in his office. _This is unacceptable._ Riza decided. Her entire life was built on order and when something didn't follow its set pattern, it pissed her off in a rather uncharacteristic manner.

Which would explain why she looked quite ready to use her hairbrush for some impromptu target practice. Her Her hair lay in an unkempt mass around her shoulders, having been brushed several times into several different styles which refused to stay in place. She growled in frustration, not understanding why her mane was being so unruly when she had done absolutely nothing different from her normal routine. She stared out the window, cursing the sunny weather for not matching her mood.

The commotion at the door pulled her out of her funk and snapped her attention to the disturbance. There were some heavy clunking noises and hushed voices. Riza relaxed as did her colleagues as they recognized the noises. The doors burst open, revealing an antique suit of armor and a red-cloaked blond. The Elric brothers entered the office, quietly muttering to one another and greeting the others.

The pair eventually made their way to Riza's desk. "Morning 1st Lt. Hawkeye." They chorused in unison. She muttered a "hello" in return, barely noting the dried blood on Fullmetal's cheek.

"Did the mission go well?"

"Uh yeah." Edward muttered, distracted by something. "Hey Al, why don't you get a start on the report." He gestured towards Mustang's office.

Al looked suspicious, as suspicious as an animated suit of armor could get. "You're not going to make me give the entire thing alone again while you sneak out are you?" The threat behind the words hung unspoken in the air and Riza had to smile. It was well known how much Fullmetal hated filing reports, even more that he hated giving them to Mustang.

"No Al. Promise. I just have to take care of something real quick. Go ahead and start without me."

The suspicious look remained, but with a resonant sigh, al tramped off. "What do you have to take care of?" Riza asked without thinking.

"Well…um, I was just." He scratched the back of his head with a white-gloved automail hand. He sounded almost…embarrassed? That gave Riza a start, the boy was rarely that uncollected. He finally ended up with a 'may I?' look on his face as he gestured towards her hairbrush. Riza found herself nodding without thinking, blaming it on curiosity. The boy grabbed the brush and moved behind her.

Riza couldn't help sighing a bit as Ed carefully de-tangled her tresses. Within a few minutes, her hair was once again smooth. It was brushed up and back and Ed divided her hair into three sections, deftly twining them together. Riza was surprised at the control, Ed's metal fingers moving with the same fragile dexterity as his flesh ones. She wondered about both of the brothers sometimes, thinking about what each mission did to them and what consequences would result if they finally did achieve their goal of restoring their bodies. She thought about everyone in the office like that, though she did devote more time to the Elrics and to Roy Mustang then she did to anyone else.

A slight snapping noise brought her out of her reverie. She retrieved a small set of mirrors from her desk, setting them so she could look at the back of her head. Ed had, of course, braided her hair, but the result was quite different from his. He had wound the braid around her head, creating a neat bun held in place by a ponytail holder she realized had been strapped to her brush handle. It was compact, uniform, and very pretty, fitting her perfectly.

She looked around, finding Ed on the way to Mustang's office. "Edward!" She called out before remembering that she rarely addressed him so informally. The red cloak swung around, the entire office watching to see the conclusion of the latest drama. "Uh…Thank you." And Edward smiled, one of those impossibly large grins of his, before kicking open the door to Mustang's office.

As Riza heard the ensuing yelling, she simply smiled herself, admiring her new hairstyle one more time before returning to her paperwork._ Sometimes,_ She decided. _Chaos was good._

Henrika- How'd I do? Review Please.


End file.
